Bank feed matching in Xero or QuickBooks works when a payment's reference or amount lines up with one invoice, and recruitment payments often don't. To match automatically, give each client their own bank details, so a payment is identified by the account it lands in instead of by what someone typed, and have it marked paid in your accounting software. Until then, a fixed weekly routine keeps manual matching under control.
In this article
The short version
- Recruitment payments often carry the client's own reference or cover several invoices.
- Bank feed rules struggle when no single invoice matches the amount.
- A fixed weekly routine with a suspense account keeps manual matching safe.
- Unique bank details per client identify each payment by the account it lands in.
- Matched payments can be marked paid in Xero or QuickBooks automatically.
Why recruitment payments are hard to match
A business client paying a supplier doesn't think about your invoice numbers. Their accounts team pays from a payment run, and the reference on your bank statement is whatever their system puts there: their own supplier code, a payment run number, or the first few characters of their company name.
On top of that, one transfer often covers several invoices. A client might send £9,140 with the reference "PAYRUN 2231" to cover two weeks of temp hours at £1,320 and £1,420 plus a perm fee of £6,400. Your accounting software is unlikely to match that on its own, because no single invoice is £9,140. Someone has to find the remittance advice, which often arrives separately by email, and split the payment by hand.
Other common problems are a parent company paying for a subsidiary under a name you don't recognise, a client deducting a disputed timesheet and paying the rest, and a perm fee paid short because the client has deducted a rebate it thinks it's owed.
A weekly matching routine
If you match by hand, doing it in the same order every week saves time and stops payments being allocated on a guess.
- Keep a list of every client's known payer names and supplier codes, including parent companies, and add to it whenever you confirm a new one.
- Match single payments that equal one open invoice exactly, checking the payer against your list.
- For lump sums, find the remittance advice before you allocate. If there isn't one, look for a combination of that client's open invoices that adds up to the amount, then confirm it with the client by email.
- Record part payments against the invoice and note what's missing and why, so whoever chases knows it's a deduction and not an oversight.
- Put anything you can't identify in a suspense account the same day and ask the likely client. Don't allocate it to an invoice until they confirm.
The routine works as long as someone runs it every week, and it gets slower as the client list grows.
How unique bank details match payments for you
The lasting fix is to stop relying on the reference at all. If each client pays into an account number and sort code that only they use, every payment that lands there belongs to that client before anyone reads the reference.
With Adfin, each client sees unique bank details and the bank account appears in the name of your business, so clients aren't paying an account with someone else's name on it, which can unsettle an accounts team checking supplier details. When a payment arrives, Adfin matches it to that client's invoices by reference where there is one, then by amount, then to the most overdue invoice. Part payments are recorded as part payments, and an overpayment is recorded separately and the client gets an email about it, so the extra doesn't sit unexplained. Invoices are marked paid in Xero or QuickBooks automatically, and bank transfers cost 1% + 20p with the percentage capped at £4, so even a large perm fee costs £4.20 at most.
To switch, send each client their new details with a short note, put them on every invoice from that date, and keep an eye on your old account for a few weeks while clients update their supplier records. For clients you invoice weekly, direct debit removes the matching question entirely, because each collection is tied to one invoice.
Anything still unpaid after that can be followed up by Customer Agents over email, SMS or WhatsApp within rules you approve, including statements for a client who's gone quiet, so a part payment with no explanation can be queried without anyone having to remember.
Common questions
Why won't Xero match a client's payment to my invoice? Usually because the reference doesn't match your invoice number or one payment covers several invoices. Bank rules need a clear reference or an exact amount to work.
What should I do with a payment I can't identify? Put it in a suspense account the same day and ask the likely client. Don't allocate it until the payer confirms.
How do I match one payment that covers several invoices? Ask for the remittance advice and split the payment across the invoices it lists. If there isn't one, confirm the split with the client in writing.
What are unique bank details? An account number and sort code given to one client only, in your business's name, so any payment into it is known to come from that client.
Do clients need to change anything to use unique bank details? They update your bank details in their supplier records once. After that they pay as normal, with no reference needed.
Does direct debit need matching? Very little. Each collection is tied to one invoice, so it's matched as soon as it's collected.
Sources
- Adfin - An introduction to Adfin bank transfers (accurate as of October 2026) https://support.adfin.com/en/articles/12600901-an-introduction-to-adfin-bank-transfers
- Adfin - Connect your Xero account to Adfin (accurate as of October 2026) https://intercom.help/adfin/en/articles/10199659-connect-your-xero-account-to-adfin
- Adfin - Connect your QuickBooks account to Adfin (accurate as of October 2026) https://support.adfin.com/en/articles/10374186-connect-your-quickbooks-account-to-adfin
- Adfin - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/pricing
